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Joel Goodman
04-01-2007, 12:16 PM
I'm posting this here as well as in "general woodworking" as it pertains to sharpening hand tools. I'm looking for a slow speed (1725 rpm) 8" grinder. Has anyone an experience with the Woodcraft which is under 100 dollars with the white wheels? Or other recomendations?

Thanks,

Joel

Mike K Wenzloff
04-01-2007, 12:27 PM
Yep. The one at Woodcraft use to cost a bit more, so the under a $100 is a decent price. As far as I can tell, it is still a good grinder. Consider replacing the wheels down the road with the Norton 3X ones which were recently released. But get some use from the white wheels first.

I have used them for sharpening classes and seem to hold up well.

WC use to sell one with a Baldor motor--that one was a great grinder. This one I would place in the Delta grinder category, for less than the Delta.

Take care, Mike

aaron allen
04-01-2007, 12:48 PM
other recommends??

Do you have extra time or pressed for minutes??

washing machine motors run close to that RPM and you'll need some kind of truing device sooner or later ( even you Tormekies), you can true up a Norton honing wheel in a homemade table made part of a sharpening center.

Still with me?? I think it was in FWW, not sure I remember seeing about it though. Some complete center and part of it folded up and the was a water cooled horizontal honing table happening cause of the washer mtr.

Graingers. Before anybody asks where to get it, and you can't buy there if not in trades or licensed, sorry not for DIY's.

You asked for others.

Sue Wise
04-01-2007, 1:45 PM
Joel,
I have that grinder. I use it to sharpen turning tools, plane blades, and chisels. It works great for me. I have had it about a year or so now. I am still using the orginal wheels.

-Sue

Dan Forman
04-01-2007, 2:59 PM
WC use to sell one with a Baldor motor--that one was a great grinder. This one I would place in the Delta grinder category, for less than the Delta.


Joel---Just to avoid confusion, the Delta grinder that Mike is referring to here is not the same as the industrial model that I mentioned in your post upstairs.

Dan

Mike K Wenzloff
04-01-2007, 3:30 PM
Nope, it isn't. Just keeping the prices/capacities roughly the same.

Taking off from your post upstairs, Dan the same thing can be said of any and all equipment: consumer- verse industrial-grade. That Delta you reference has also dropped in price quite a bit and is a good buy now.

The Jet products also make great industrial bench grinders. The JBG-10A, at 110 lbs and using 10" wheels is a heck of a grinder. I've used one and it is a very solid grinder...but double the price.

And then there are the big boys in terms of weight and price. They seem a tad overkill for sharpening hand tools, though.

Take care, Mike

Joel Goodman
04-01-2007, 6:16 PM
Thanks for the advice.

Joel

Roger Bell
04-02-2007, 9:47 PM
Don't forget the used market, particularly if you are near a large city with a Craiglist. I see industrial quality Baldors regularly enough at reasonable prices....often around $100 or so.

As an example, about a year ago, I got a Walker-Turner similar to this one (shown in the link below) for about $100.....vastly superior in every way to the common fare.

http://www.owwm.com/PhotoIndex/detail.asp?id=347

Also, I wouldn't get too hung up by insisting on "slow" speed. Proper technique and a "better" quality set of wheels count far more.

Tony Zaffuto
04-03-2007, 12:35 PM
To add to what Roger said, I'd opt for Norton 3X wheels, in probably a 60 grit. To help with technique, take a look at the grinder rest that Lee Valley sells. You can get this with a holder for your chisels/blades that will result in controlled square or skew cuts.

Some may suggest an 80 grit wheel, however, the finer the wheel, the better your chances of burning steel, particularly if you don't have a slow speed grinder. I use a 60 grit Norton 3X (white) on a high speed grinder with excellent results.

Mark Pruitt
04-03-2007, 1:36 PM
I pretty much hang out in the Turners' Forum but I caught the thread title here. I have the grinder in question and use it (naturally) for sharpening my turning tools. It really is a decent machine. I had reservations about it at first, for no real reason other than it not being a "brand name," but I bought it anyway and like it a lot. The wheels are AO and are satisfactory, but when you replace them do like others here have suggested and get a pair of good Nortons.

There have been some vibration issues noted by some, including myself, but I dealt with it successfully by simply dressing the wheels and then rotating them on the shaft until I found a sweet spot. The balancing system sold by Oneway will not work with the AO wheels that come with the WC grinder, so if you plan to purchase it you shouldn't get it until you're ready to replace the original wheels.